topic Tax Status for Third-year J1 Visa in the US in Get your taxes done using TurboTax

Tax Status for Third-year J1 Visa in the US

Guangle — Fri, 05 Mar 2021 21:26:56 GMT

I came to the US in 2018 with a J1 visa as a research scholar. I lived in the US for 365 days in 2020 and undoubtedly I became a resident alien. So when I file the tax return for 2020, should I do as a resident alien for the whole year? Or should I file it with dual-status (183 days for NRA and the other 183 days for RA in 2020)?

Thanks!

Re: Tax Status for Third-year J1 Visa in the US

ErnieS0 — Sun, 07 Mar 2021 21:28:39 GMT

File as a full-year resident. The IRS says “you are a resident alien of the United States for tax purposes if you meet either the green card test or the substantial presence test for the calendar year (January 1-December 31).”

You do not have to split your residency (file as dual-status).

Related Resource:

Determining Alien Tax Status

Re: Tax Status for Third-year J1 Visa in the US

Guangle — Mon, 08 Mar 2021 23:24:36 GMT

Thanks for your reply.

I was informed that I would not receive 1042-s for 2020 because I became a resident alien. I also can't receive W-2 forms since I receive stipends from the university instead of wages. I was told that I need to self-report my income. I'm wondering if I can use TurboTax to file my tax return under these circumstances.

Thanks!

Re: Tax Status for Third-year J1 Visa in the US

LinaJ2020 — Tue, 09 Mar 2021 00:22:32 GMT

Yes, you can use TurboTax to report the income. You will enter under "Other Income" in the program. Here are the steps:

In TurboTax online,

Sign into your account, select Pick up where you left off
To the right upper corner, in the search box, type in "other reportable income" and Enter
Select Jump to other reportable income
Next screen, Other Wages Received, select No to continue
Next screen, scroll down all the way to the bottom, under Other reportable income, select Start
Next screen, Any Other Taxable Income? select Yes to continue

It will show on line 8 of Schedule 1 and Form 1040.

Re: Tax Status for Third-year J1 Visa in the US

Guangle — Tue, 09 Mar 2021 00:35:26 GMT

Thank you for your reply.

I have one more question. Can I use US-China treaty article 19 for tax exemption in TurboTax? If so, how can I use it?

Thanks!

Re: Tax Status for Third-year J1 Visa in the US

LinaJ2020 — Tue, 09 Mar 2021 00:41:42 GMT

An international tax treaty-related question is out of our scope for advice, unfortunately. You would need to seek a professional who is specialized in this matter for verification. If you believe the treaty applies to you, you will need to file a Form 8833.

To report information in the TurboTax program, here are the steps:

Report your income as usual. Then enter the treaty-exempt amount as negative amount (e.g. -5000) through this path-Federal Taxes / Less Common Income / Miscellaneous Income 1099A, 1099C / Other Reportable Income
Download and fill in a Form 8833 to claim an exception. https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f8833.pdf
You cannot e-file. You can still use the TurboTax program to prepare your tax forms, but you need to print out all your tax forms and submit the Form to 8833 together by mail to the IRS.

Re: Tax Status for Third-year J1 Visa in the US

Guangle — Tue, 09 Mar 2021 04:25:07 GMT

Thank you!